Daily Archives: September 14, 2012

The BCMS Bobcats got off to a great start on Tuesday, September 4 with a 24-0 home win over Bradford County.

Head coach Rock Rhoden’s Bobcats controlled the game on both sides of the ball and stymied Bradford every time they tried to engineer a drive. Bradford couldn’t do anything against the Bobcat defense. They got but one first down that evening, the result of an offside penalty.

The Bobcats were rocked back on their heels when quarterback Joe Green broke his leg on the third play of the game, however.

“We were devastated,” said Rhoden. “He had worked so hard all summer and is such a great kid. But I am proud of the team for keeping it together and winning the game.”

It maligns progress, and the irony is, it’s probably so common in America because we have it so good; because we’ve come so far as a nation in our relatively short history.

I think too often our fellow citizens become disillusioned with the political process, and for good reason. There’s gridlock, partisanship, greed, corruption, cronyism, nepotism — the list is long and undistinguished, no doubt.

But that’s all the more reason to register and cast your vote for whoever you believe will represent you and your values the best. I know that’s not always easy. I’ve been guilty of staying home on election day like the millions of eligible voters that didn’t turn out two years ago.

Florida has received an exceptional amount of rain this summer that has led to flooding on our rivers, creeks, swamps, and other low lying areas. Although trees require water to grow and stay healthy, too much of a good thing can stress our trees causing growth loss, disease, insect outbreaks and in some cases death.

A few tree species, such as bald cypress, is adapted to frequent flooding and will survive this excessively wet summer without harm. However, many of our trees will be stressed for several years even after the high waters recede. The first symptoms usually noticed are leaf yellowing, shoot growth, crown die-back and defoliation.

There are many factors that determine if a tree will survive flooding including species, age, vigor, flood duration, location, soil characteristics and the time of year. Once a tree becomes weakened, it is more prone to insect and disease damage. When the ground becomes saturated, conditions are ideal for fungal problems that lead to root rot diseases. Flooded soil conditions promote reproduction and dispersal of these fungi but also promote the susceptibility of roots to infection. Saturated soils also reduce soil oxygen levels that may cause some roots to die leaving the tree with a smaller root system to recover from the stress.

Barney Lewis Crews Sr., 51, of Macclenny died unexpectedly on Wednesday, June 6, 2012 at his home. He was born in Jacksonville, raised in Baker County and attended Baker County High School. Mr. Crews served his country in the United States Army and was a member of the Ironworkers Local Union #597 in Jacksonville. He was an avid Florida Gator fan and loved living at his home on the St. Mary’s River that he called the “Crews’ Fish Camp.” Mr. Crews was preceded in death by brother Jeffrey V. Crews in 1978.